Issue 2186
Welcome to RV Travel’s Daily Tips Newsletter, where you’ll find helpful RV-related tips from the pros, travel advice, RV videos, product reviews and more. Please tell your friends about us.
Today’s thought
“It’s the questions we can’t answer that teach us the most. They teach us how to think. If you give a man an answer, all he gains is a little fact. But give him a question and he’ll look for his own answers.” ―
Need an excuse to celebrate? Today is World Lizard Day!
On this day in history: 1893 – France becomes the first country to introduce motor vehicle registration.
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Tip of the Day
17 brilliant lazy Susan hacks for RVers
By Gail Marsh
There’s no room for clutter in an RV. One way to corral the clutter is to use a lazy Susan. Yep, you can use these spinning gadgets for far more than you think!
(In case you have no idea what I’m talking about, this is what I’m referring to.)
In the kitchen
- Near exit door. Place a lazy Susan on a countertop near your RV’s exit door. It can hold keys, a pet leash, coins, sunscreen, bug spray, sunglasses, and other items you may need when venturing outside.
- Coffee/tea station. Use one to keep all your coffee/tea items contained. Coffee pods, tea bags, mugs, stir spoons, sweetener packets, and more will be right where you need them each morning! A two-tier lazy Susan can hold coffee mugs on the bottom tray and the top tier can hold the rest.
Ask Dave
Dave Solberg is a leading expert in the RV industry and author of the “RV Handbook.”
Are there any “good” alternatives to a traditional RV roof air conditioner?
Dear Dave,
What is a “good” alternative to an RV rooftop air conditioner? The more I look at it, the more confusing it gets. I should have added a second A/C when I ordered my current rig. I am open to any options! Thank you. —Randy, 2022 Flagstaff 8529RLS
Quit struggling with hose and cable hookups at the campsite
Are you tired of struggling to hook up your coax cables, water hoses and other connections when you arrive at your campsite? It’s a snap with Cable and Hose Grips from J Wright Concepts. Save time and frustration! Life is too short to hassle with the little stuff! Learn more or order.
RV Reviews
Encore RV RöG 16RB—An unusual overlanding trailer
After seeing as many RVs as I’ve seen, it’s relatively simple for me to categorize new offerings and, often, even see unusual use cases for things. But the 2024 Encore RV RöG 16RB is tough to pigeonhole.
Well, it is an overlanding RV to be sure, but not much like anything I’ve seen before.
In the RV shop with Dustin
RV Extended Warranties, Part 2: Wholesale Warranties and plan offerings
You’ll often hear conflicting stories about RV Extended Warranty Plans. Some consumers hate them, some won’t travel without them. Before you continue reading, make sure you read Part 1 of this series here. I recently interviewed Staci from Wholesale Warranties. In this episode, Staci shares all the plan offerings available through Wholesale Warranties.
Video of the day
DIY camper awning: How to turn a $7 Harbor Freight tarp into campsite shade
By Cheri Sicard
Steve, of Xplorer Steve DIY, wanted a low-cost awning for his car camper. In the video below he shows how to transform a $7 Harbor Freight tarp into an easy DIY camper awning project. This DIY shade will work for cars, SUVs, vans, and more.
Newport Car Museum owners’ private collection is a joy for the public
Major automobile collections are available in massive museums throughout the United States. And there are also plenty of smaller, equally impressive private offerings, with rare openings to the public. The Newport Car Museum is a hybrid. Now in its sixth year, it’s the largest automotive museum in New England and it celebrates seven decades of modern industrial car design represented in more than 85 vehicles. Ready for a little trip down memory lane?
Reader poll
In general, do you like clowns?
?? MYSTERY PRODUCT OF THE DAY ??
If you’re a kid at heart, and sometimes eat like one, you’re going to love this. We do!!!
Quick Tip
Doors “that go bump” in the RV
Reader Erinn M. writes: “Tired of the upper cabinet doors in your RV slamming shut every time you close them?! Ever look at how manufacturers attempt to ‘protect’ them from doing so? With TINY, thin, felt pads! I purchased a package of ‘Heavy Duty Self-adhesive Felt Pad Bumpers’ and stuck them right over the thin pads already in place, and problem fixed! I also stuck a couple on the metal ‘openers’ of our exterior storage bays that might dent or scratch the paint if opened too quickly. After several washes, they are still ‘stuck’ in place.” A package of 168 is under $7 on Amazon.
Website of the day
NYPL Digital Collections
History buff? So are we. The New York Public Library offers 861,599 (and counting) digital items from its collections. Explore everything from old maps and photographs, to sheet music, to letters, to old posters.
Popular articles you may have missed at RVtravel.com
- Majority of RVtravel.com readers would like to own an RV park. Former campground owner says “stay away”
- Readers share their stories: Should you trust a stranger?
- How to deal with losing your wallet while on the road
Recipe of the Day
Italian Spiced Pork Chops
by Carla Tipton from Dublin, OH
The oil mixture on these tender pork chops not only infuses flavor but also gives the chops some very handsome grill marks. Marinating the pork chops gives them a tangy flavor with a hint of spice.
[wbcr_snippet id=”337364″ title=”AHM Video Recipe Widget”]
Trivia
Pinball machines were once banned from New York City for 34 years. Why? In the 1940s, there was panic over this seemingly innocent form of entertainment. Mayor LaGuardia made the argument that pinball machines encouraged gambling and were owned by the mob. He argued they should be illegal and that they were actually “tools from the devil.” Two years later, in 1942, pinball machines were banned entirely from the city (other cities followed, including LA and Chicago). The cities conducted prohibition-style raids where all pinball machines were smashed with hammers and thrown into the city’s rivers.
Readers’ Pet of the Day
“Renny is a 2.5-year-old English Pointer who is just getting used to the RV life. She loves to run and point birds. We bought the RV so we could take her and her partner in crime, Willy (1-year-old English Pointer), on fun trips with us instead of leaving them at home. She loves to watch while her daddy drives.” —Julie Knight
Send us a photo of your pet with a short description. We publish one each weekday in RV Daily Tips and in our Sunday RV Travel newsletter. No blurry photos, please! Please do not submit your photo more than once. Thanks!
• RVing with Dogs group on Facebook. You’ll love it.
Brand-new book for county park camping
Roundabout Publications and the Ultimate Campground Project have published the first edition of “Camping in America’s County Parks.” The 192-page directory profiles 2,068 RV, van and tent camping areas at 1,408 parks in 42 states. Inside, maps pinpoint campgrounds with information about staying, including types of restrooms, showers, dump stations and RV length limits. Rates, contact and reservation information is also listed. Read more about it here.
Leave here with a laugh
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Contact information
Editor: Emily Woodbury
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Editorial (all but news): editor@rvtravel.com
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Everything in this newsletter is true to the best of our knowledge. But we occasionally get something wrong. We’re just human! So don’t go spending $10,000 on something we said was good simply because we said so, or fixing something according to what we suggested (check with your own technician first). Maybe we made a mistake. Tips and/or comments in this newsletter are those of the authors and may not reflect the views of RVtravel.com or this newsletter.
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I love laugh of the day. Reminds me of Dukes of Hazard. Great show. As for clowns I liked them back in the day but now they can be irksome. I have a metal key holder by the door. so I can step out grab and go. This way they don’t fall into something they are not suppose to fall into. I found this king ring holder years ago and has stayed with each new trailer since. Prefer that to a lazy susan. Less stuff to junk up the counters with. Gotta stay organized.
The current extreme temperatures are causing my 3M Command hooks to unfasten from the halls in the RV. Currently, it’s 85 F, at 0530.
Agreed! I keep fishing rods stored overhead in my carport with Command Hooks. After 2 yrs with no issues, they are falling off in the summer’s heat.
Central Florida I’ve had enough. High 90s with feels like in triple digits AND what drives me nuts, the lows stay in the 80s at night. No time or temp to recuperate. Gulf water temps in the 90s – as hot as hot springs I’ve visited. I’m going with my dog for a nap UNDER the couch.
In response to the thought of the day today, I rather have questions I can’t answer than answers I can’t question.
I see we have a new face to our comment section(s). No more notification if someone responds to my comments, and the ‘thingie’ next to my name is actually my old FB picture. Is it just me or has there been a change? The font also seems tp be smaller. That’s tough on an old guy like me – ha. Luckily my computer screen allows me to spread my fingers and make stuff bigger.
Agree, the font is smaller, much harder to read even with my readers on 😞
Font is smaller and lighter in color. especially when typing this into the “Reply” form. It’s like trying to read instructions on a pill bottle. Will have to get out my magnifying glass as to keep nose prints off my screen, and I already have readers over my readers. I was afraid it was my eyes, but glad to see (hardly) that others are having trouble too. Has RVT struck a deal with Optometrists of America? Pretty soon a survey will come out that RVers in America have poorer eyesight than Non-RVers.
Hi, Kelly, Mike, and others. Here’s what our IT dude, Kim, has to say about the issues with the comments: “We had to turn off our extra comment features this weekend due to technical problems. We’re in the process of transferring to a new commenting service. More to come on that soon.” So, thank you for your patience in the meantime. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Diane, I could not operate anything to do with computers, but am glad you and your team does and thank you for doing so. I will put up with all you have to do to keep RVT working, because you put up with me and some others.
Thanks, Kelly. Yeah, you’re a tough one to “put up with,” all right.🙄 Love your wit and wacky sense of humor. It’s always a pleasure to see your comments.👍 Have a good evening/night. 🤗 –Diane
Love the Stinking Badge logo!
Pinball machines banned. True story, as I had a great Uncle in Buffalo NY whose business was pinball machines in the forties and fifties. His machines were indeed used only for gambling. The outer part was like a reguzlr pinball machine, but the board was all numbers. If you lined up the pinballs in a certain order you received money from the proprietor. There were many combinations which paid off, but as we all know most of those playing lost to the machine.
Fact, not fiction.
My older brother was a collector for the “Family” that owned the pinball machines in Seattle. If you ever saw him, you’d know why. They lasted well into the Fifties and then the police dumped all the machines in Puget Sound.
I like this new format .. Do I get a random quilt design too?
Yay .. I do .. Now Bobbi will have a new pattern to work with!
Thank you, Emily! So, no more rating of articles AND no more self-editing of comments? Yikes! You mean I have to proof-read my comments BEFORE posting them?! 😉
The ‘leave here’ looks suspiciously like the recently washed out section of Kolob Canyon’s upper overlook road, looking down the road from the uphill side. I HOPE the sign wording was photoshopped! 😲 Kolob Canyon is a section of Zion Ntl Pk west of I-15 north of St George UT. My wife & I currently work p/t for Zion Park Forever, the non-profit helping to support Zion Park, in the park’s main visitor center.
Renny the Pointer is sooooo precious!🐶 thank you 😀
Mystery Product of the day – I guess those are for the clown in your life?
It seems that the trivia of NY is still in effect with the big cities that follow suit with the seemingly crazy ideas to make people nuts.